


And so we meet again...

by coeursdeverre



Category: No. 6 (Anime & Manga)
Genre: M/M, Reunion, Two Years Later
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-03-24
Updated: 2017-08-12
Packaged: 2018-10-10 03:33:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 12,685
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10428207
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/coeursdeverre/pseuds/coeursdeverre
Summary: Hello, hello ! so, this is the first fic I have posted in years and honestly, I'm quite happy to be writing again. Please, do not hesitate to leave any constructive criticism (positive or negative), so that I can improve and make this fic more enjoyable. Also do not expect this to be posted regularly, I know I wouldn't be able to stick to a schedule (plus I'm quite the slow writer).Thanks to my friend remusblack for being my beta reader and helping me out with this chapter!!Hope you'll like it!





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hello, hello ! so, this is the first fic I have posted in years and honestly, I'm quite happy to be writing again. Please, do not hesitate to leave any constructive criticism (positive or negative), so that I can improve and make this fic more enjoyable. Also do not expect this to be posted regularly, I know I wouldn't be able to stick to a schedule (plus I'm quite the slow writer).
> 
> Thanks to my friend remusblack for being my beta reader and helping me out with this chapter!!
> 
> Hope you'll like it!

Nezumi never thought he would love being woken up to the sound of children playfully screaming outside, and yet it had become his favorite way of starting his day. But then if you were to ask him about anything that had happened in the past two years or so, none of it ever was in his life plans but for one thing: he had taken part in the fall of No. 6. The reminiscence of that dreaded society made old wounds burn and caused repressed anger and hatred to resurface for a brief moment. Nezumi turned in his bed, kicking in that sudden movement his blanket on the floor of his small house. Had his bed always felt so empty and cold? The young man couldn’t help but imagine a silhouette lying next to him; for a cursed moment it almost felt real: he could picture his fingers twisting themselves in white hair, the phantom of a slow and warm breath caressing his neck in rhythm while red eyes stared at him like he was the most beautiful creature the world had borne.

A loud knock on the door brought him back to reality, quickly followed by the vibrant voice of a woman urging him to go to the gates of their village as soon as he could. Nezumi got out of bed to get dressed with more difficulty than he usually would.

Why was he thinking about _him_? It wasn’t as if _he_ hadn’t haunted his dreams and thoughts ever since they had parted, but time had passed, and so _he_ had become over the course of weeks, months more of a painful memory rather than a yearning and a desire as it once had. This sudden realization tightened Nezumi’s heart a little: had he fallen out of love with _him_? It couldn’t possibly be, or so he hoped, after all he had made a promise two years ago and he still intended on not breaking it.

Echoes of children playing together and the chirps of birds accompanied Nezumi in his short walk to the gates. The village wasn’t very wide, as only about fifty people lived in there, but it was a strong community with a common goal: to live in harmony with nature just like an old civilization once had, the Forest People. That was truly the only reason why Nezumi stayed; he was the last survivor of the People and so, he felt that it was his duty to make sure his old ways of living weren’t disrespected. He looked around at the small houses, if you could even call them that, roughly made of wood and metal, their fragile structure reminding him of all the work they still had to do until next winter. Last year, many people had almost died of hypothermia because of the terrible isolation of their inhabitations, but this year, they’d be ready to face the strong winds and the snow. Nezumi’s pace quickened in the last meters he had to walk as if some feeling of urgency was chasing him.

The woman who called him to the gates greeted him with a wave and a shy smile, which was very unusual of her. She was called Ren, she was a few years older than Nezumi and the only person in the village who he would maybe consider a friend, meaning that she was somewhat the only one whose presence could be tolerable. Nezumi had always been the solitary, wandering type, he still hadn’t gotten used to living actively within a community after all these years of avoiding as many humans as he could. Next to her stood a 30-something year old man that Nezumi had never seen before, he was dressed in torn and extremely worn-out clothes just like everyone these days, however he looked cleaner, clear shaved and his short curly hair was precisely cut. This clearly wasn’t a man seeking for refuge and Ren’s attitude showed that while the situation was serious, he didn’t represent any danger. Then what was he here for?

“Say whatever you have to say and leave. I don’t have time for you”, Nezumi’s tone was particularly sharp, as his impatience had taken over whatever civility there was in him.

The stranger was taken aback for a moment, he quickly recollected himself though and announced in a shaky, yet determined voice:

“I was sent from No. 7 to beg you for your help. Things have been getting tenser with No. 6’s loyalists who refuse to cooperate with us to accomplish unity. We know you refuse to be involved in our fights, however peace has never been more at danger ever since the wall fell down. There have been several assassination attempts on one of our leaders, Shion-”

“What did you just say?” yelled Nezumi and grabbed the messenger by his clean jacket to shake him violently. Anger always took the best of him, thankfully Ren was there to separate the two men. She then pressed Nezumi’s arm as a signal for him to calm down, while looking at him with the most surprised expression.

“I truly apologize for his behavior, please continue.”

“Right,” the stranger seemed more and more uncomfortable, “like I said, there have been several assassination attempts but thankfully none of them succeeded.” He paused to look at Nezumi who didn’t look too murderous anymore, which gave him some courage to finish transmitting his message. “We need as many allies as we can gather in case the loyalists try to go fully at war, please consider helping us. For the sake of peace, for the sake of unity.”

* * *

 

Nezumi didn’t utter a word despite Ren’s attempts to start a conversation up until they arrived in her house. It was always used for meetings and other more official discussions, as it had the rare luxury of a table and a few chairs. Aside from that, the only room making up her house was fairly empty: a dirty old mattress that barely survived a fire in its past life was laid in one corner, and some food was roughly packed up in boxes in another one. Nezumi recalled how much Ren hated her home: she had always dreamed of living in one of the upper class houses in No.6 but never could achieve her dream even before the wall fell down, as the results of her test showed an insufficient intelligence. He proceeded in sitting down in his favorite seat, the one facing the door, and waited up on his host to start talking.

“Nezumi, I feel you need to do some explaining right now, not that I care about your past life or who that Shion is to you… But this whole story might put us all in danger too. I hope that you realize that if the loyalists declare war on No.7, we’ll be next in line even if our population is mainly old people and single mothers with their orphans. I just can’t let this happen.” Ren hit the table with her left fist, sign that she was getting very angry and determined about whatever had just crossed her mind. The next step for her was to get up and walk around a bit to get her nerves back. Nezumi knew her mannerisms by heart and waited for that ritual to be over; his arms were crossed, his eyes closed and his mind was somewhere else.

Finally, he heard the thump of Ren falling heavily back into her chair. “So, what is your plan?” he inquired with his eyes still shut.

“Is this really all you have to tell me?” she sounded particularly tired of Nezumi never entirely telling her what’s on his mind, “However if you really are interested, I intend to go and try to help out those guys as much as I can to keep us safe, and something tells me that I will not be the only one departing.” Ren stood up and exited her house to take some fresh air, as her house had no windows and this morning of spring was particularly warm. Nezumi tilted his head slightly backwards and sighed heavily, he knew he would go back someday, he just never thought that day would come so soon. Would he be ready to face _him_? And more importantly, would he stay this time?

He looked up at the semi-opened door and followed Ren outside. He found her helping two children out with some buckets of water they had to carry home and went to lend a hand too. After kindly refusing the invitation for dinner from the mother of the children, Nezumi and Ren wandered a bit deeper into the forest where the air was chiller.

“So,” began Nezumi as Ren was seating herself against a tree, “who will we leave in charge of the village while we’re gone?”

“Shin would be a good choice, wouldn’t it?”

“I agree. Let’s announce our departure to everyone tonight and leave tomorrow morning. There is no reason for us to linger any longer.” And just as Nezumi uttered those words, he swore that he saw two mice running in the direction of what once was No.6’s great wall.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! so as promised, here is the second chapter of the fic, I really hope you'll like it.
> 
> Thanks to remusblack for beta reading it!

After three days of walking in the rain, Nezumi and Ren had finally arrived at the West Block. They both were extremely dirty from the mud in which they had to travel and to sleep on, so any person they encountered in the rebuilt streets of the Block looked at them as if they had arrived from another world and well, they weren’t entirely wrong. A lot had changed since Nezumi left, so much even that he almost wondered if they didn’t take the wrong direction and end up in an unknown town. However, the ruined, ever-threatening wall of No.6 confirmed to Nezumi that he didn’t lose his excellent sense of directions, and in that moment he realized that maybe he wished to be in the wrong place. Ren, on the other hand, looked amazed: she had never come here before, having been a citizen of No.6. Nezumi had never bothered to ask her what she knew of the West Block, but he could only just imagine that in her mind it was a gigantic disorganized dumpster filled with sickly people. So, seeing that it was actually an organized place with shops, houses, a theater and so on, must’ve been a delightful shock to her. Nezumi decided not to destroy what seemed to be a positive impression of the place, and not to mention all the more dangerous and less glamorous aspects of the West Block in the hopes that it really had been transformed into a safer place since Shion had apparently had a role in its rebuilding. His heart tightened slightly at the thought of Shion being in danger, but he showed none of it. Instead, he ordered Ren to walk faster because after all, they didn’t come to this place to have fun.  
  
Ren, who had started to feel hungry from the non-stop walking since early in the morning, looked through her bag and realized that they didn’t plan enough provisions. Thankfully, Nezumi had kept some coins from back when he lived in the Block and so, they went to the market before even looking for any headquarters where they could announce themselves.  
  
They were at a stall that was selling mainly fruits and vegetables arguing if it was more nutritious for them to buy carrots, onions or both to accompany the potatoes they had already bought when they were interrupted by the soft chuckle of the old woman that tended the stall. Nezumi looked at her straight in the eye and inquired if she was making fun of them, slightly annoyed by her interruption.  
  
“Not at all,” she replied. “You two just reminded me of me and my husband when we were younger, and well, you do form a lovely couple.”  
  
“What?” said Ren a bit too loudly and wearily. “Pardon me ma’am, but you’re heavily mistaken. I’ll take those carrots.” She rushed to pay her due and walked away. Nezumi didn’t entirely understand what had just happened, so he just looked apologetically at the old woman and followed his friend.  
  
“Honestly Ren, if I cared at all I almost would’ve been vexed. I didn’t know I was that repulsive for you to react that way,” teased Nezumi who couldn’t resist the temptation.  
  
“It’s not you Nezumi, I mean, yes, you could say it is you, but really, not just you.” Ren was conscious that she made no sense at all, so she paused for a second to take a big breath. “Men have never been my thing, that’s all. So I get a bit annoyed when people just assume that I’m into them, you know? Anyway, I’m sorry for having reacted like that.” She laughed a bit, partly to relieve her stress, partly because it all felt a bit silly to her.  
  
“Just forget about it. Well, we should probably find some place to cook those vegetables and get a bath. I know where we could go. Come on, follow me.”  
  
The underground corridor was exactly the same as two years ago: the air was a bit suffocating but the humidity and the warmth felt so familiar to Nezumi that the slight feeling of uncomfortableness due to having spent two years far in the forest didn’t matter to him. His whole body still knew the way to his small apartment by heart, he could’ve probably gone there with his eyes closed. It even amazed him how so little seemed to have changed compared to the rest of West Block; he heard more laughter and people talking than he used to, but that might’ve been the extent of the changes. They arrived at the door of his old home and Nezumi didn’t know whether he should knock or just enter straight away. He didn’t think of the fact that someone might be living in there. Also he wasn’t sure he wanted to see what was behind that door now, so he just stood there with his hand on the knob for a few moments, his heart beating faster. Ren must’ve guessed that it wasn’t exactly an easy moment for her friend so she gently patted his left arm in support and was surprised that he didn’t even flinch or react in any negative way; he really must’ve been feeling anxious at this very moment.  
  
Finally, Nezumi decided to just go ahead and enter the room, and deal with the potential consequences in due time. He opened the door slowly, set foot in the apartment and stood there with his mouth slightly open: it was as if time had stopped in this room or as if the door was a portal to the past, in any case Nezumi couldn’t believe that it had been two years since he’d left, could it be that he had miscalculated? He turned around to look at Ren who smiled at the sight of a couch and rushed to take off her shoes and jump on it. Nezumi closed the door behind him and walked around in the room: his piano seemed to have been less played but was still in good shape, the couch and bed have seen better days, but still had a life ahead of them. He turned to his right to see that all the books were still there: he walked towards his small library with a knot in his stomach, fearing that it might all disappear if he touched anything. He took the first book he saw, it was Macbeth. He carefully opened it and started reading a few lines, as to remind him that it was all very real, and not just an illusion from the fatigue. Just as he was starting to get into the story, he heard the door behind him open, which caused his entire body to freeze and for him to drop Shakespeare’s play on the floor. He didn’t dare to turn around to face the owner of his old home, perhaps because there was a chance that that person wasn’t the one he was hoping for.  
  
“H-Hi!” stuttered Ren and hastily stood up. “We are very sorry to have intruded your place, we weren’t sure if anyone was still living here, but we needed a place to rest so… We will leave right away, don’t worry.” She started putting her shoes back on and glanced at Nezumi, who still hadn’t moved.  
  
“No, please, stay. Be my guests, especially since you look like you have had a rough journey.”  
  
Nezumi recognized that voice right away, dug his fingers deep in his palms, and turned around in one sudden movement to face Shion who hadn’t looked at him yet. Just as Nezumi was getting impatient, Shion finally glanced at him and the warm welcoming smile on his face washed away immediately. The two young men just stood there, one as shocked and speechless as the other, leaving Ren more confused than ever. Nezumi took his time to observe Shion: his white hair had gotten a lot longer and was tied in a bun, his red eyes were bright like always, and his pink scars from the parasitic wasp had faded away a bit but were still easily noticeable. As Shion walked towards Nezumi, he could see that Shion had grown taller, but so had he and thus the height difference was conserved, which amused Nezumi a bit.  
  
As Shion now stood right in front of Nezumi, his first instinct was to jump on him and hug him tight, but he knew better so he just held out his right hand to the white haired boy. It looked a bit as if Shion was disappointed by this gesture, but he concealed it well and shook Nezumi’s hand while timidly smiling at him.  
  
_Dammit_ , thought Nezumi. _What an idiot I am, I shouldn’t have done that, or?_  


“Nezumi,” Shion’s soft voice dragged him out of his thoughts. “I- I didn’t expect you here.”  
  
“Come, let’s sit on the couch.” Nezumi still had some troubles to look Shion directly in the eye so he didn’t lose too much time by the books. Ren moved a bit to the side to let Shion and Nezumi sit, and by watching them both and their awkward interactions, she started to put the puzzle pieces together and to finally get an idea of what was going on.  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, Ren is a lesbian, obviously. Now the most important plot point I believe is: will she find a girlfriend? mmm
> 
> Anyway, thank you if you have read and enjoyed the chapter, do not hesitate to comment. 
> 
> See you soon x


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hiiii ! I surprisingly have been able to more or less stick to a schedule, hopefully I will be able to keep up that rhythm.
> 
> As always, a big thank you to remusblack for beta reading this chapter.
> 
> I hope you'll like it x

Shion sat down between Ren and Nezumi after he and Ren had introduced themselves to each other. He had tried to be as friendly as he humanly could towards his guest, however the unexpected arrival of Nezumi troubled him to the point that he had to force himself to keep his cool. Nobody dared to speak for a few minutes, making the air feel stuffy, oppressing and threatening even; it was as if the Pandora box of Nezumi and Shion’s shared past had been opened and closed right before the good memories and emotions could get out. Nezumi focused his entire attention on the leather-bound book that was still lying on the ground, not knowing how he had to act or what he should say. He realized that ever since that stranger had come at the gates of the village, he hadn’t done anything without thinking it through first and frankly, he could’ve used some extra time to figure out a plan, a strategy, anything that could’ve made things less difficult. He wanted to glance quickly at Ren and to somehow apologize to her because he felt bad for having dragged her in this awkward situation, but having to look at her meant seeing Shion and it still felt too bizarre and out of place to do so. Instead he just sunk further into the sofa, hoping that it would absorb him entirely and make him disappear. Truth be told, Nezumi had fantasized a lot about his reunion with Shion these past two years, and had thought of many scenarios; none of them included him showing up unannounced at his old apartment and feeling more of an intruder and less of an old awaited friend.

“Had I known you’d be visiting today, I would’ve cleaned up the place,” declared Shion in a light tone trying to ease the tense mood a bit, after finally having gathered up some courage to break the silence. “So, what brought the two of you to West Block?”

“Your people sent a messenger to us and asked us for help because you’re in danger,” Ren took the lead and answered, after all she was the chief of their small village. “Nezumi and I came here to see just how useful we could be to you and honestly, after having briefly visited the Block I do not see how we could help. We aren’t many, and most of us are inept to fight. We should be the ones begging for your help.”

Shion opened his eyes wide open. “Wait, you’re telling me that you come from the forest? Finally, you have accepted to establish contact with us after all this time! I didn’t know I needed to be nearly assassinated for that to happen though.” That last sentence felt like a slap to Nezumi as he couldn’t help but decipher another meaning behind it. He realized that if he didn’t act now, it might become very hard to reconnect with Shion again.

“We,” justified Nezumi, “didn’t want to be mixed up in No.6’s business anymore. This isolation and independence was our way to start all over. But you can’t escape that easily from that mess, can you? If your people knows about us, then the loyalists do too. Hiding isn’t an option for our survival anymore.” When he finally looked up and met Shion’s bright eyes something tightened in his stomach and he could feel slight warmth going up to his cheeks, all of which gave him the confirmation he needed. He then continued, “But I have to agree with Ren, if a war is coming then we are of no use to you.”

**_We_** _might not be of any use to **you** , but I want to help you. Please let me be here for you. _Those were the words Nezumi wished he had the audacity to say but could as of now only utter in his mind.

Shion smiled. “You both forget that an alliance can do more than just provide flesh to die on the battlefield. Besides, we are trying everything we can to avoid an open conflict. Anyways, I take it you will be soon heading back to your village.” He then got up and looked in the bag containing the vegetables that was put on the table. “At least let me cook you a soup with those ingredients you brought and also, you should take a bath before departing. I’ll give you clothes to change into.”

Shion took a wooden box from under the bed before Ren or Nezumi could try to refuse his offer. He rummaged through it for some time and ignored all of Ren’s attempts to tell him that they didn’t need any clothes and that he should keep such precious goods for himself. “What’s the point of possessing anything if you can’t share it with people?” is all that Shion had to answer.

“So Ren, since you’re almost as tall as me, it was easy to find something for you.” He handed her baggy black trousers and a grey turtleneck, a choice that Ren approved. She thanked him with a smile. He then turned to Nezumi, “As for you, I was worried I wouldn’t have anything that would fit you. But two days ago I got some clothes that were too large for me. What a great coincidence, don’t you think? Almost as if they were destined for you.” He handed Nezumi a paper bag, when he looked in it, his face became livid.

“Shion, you don’t seriously mean for me to wear _that_?” He took out a pastel pink sweater and a pair of light blue jeans.

Ren puffed loudly and couldn’t hide the amusement that Nezumi’s reaction caused. “Honestly,” she said, “I think you’d finally look somewhat approachable and friendly wearing that. It might help us with our diplomatic endeavor.” She paused and finally finished putting her shoes on. “Shion, we won’t be leaving until we meet all your leaders. Well, I think I’m going to go ahead and take that bath first.” She left the room in a hurry as if she were waiting for an opportunity to leave the two young men alone for some time and thus seized the first occasion she saw.

“I, I didn’t even tell her where she had to go. Should I run after her?” inquired Shion.

“No, leave her be. She probably wants to explore around a bit. She’ll come back if she needs help.” Nezumi dropped the paper bag on the ground and looked at it with some malice in his eyes. “Is this a joke? Or a punishment? Frankly I didn’t think you’d be this petty.”

 “I promise you this is all I had for you, but I believe pink would look wonderful on you.” Shion was a bit on the defensive however after having understood that those remarks were teasing on Nezumi’s part, he relaxed a bit and began speaking with a softer voice. “And I am not mad at you for having left. I don’t know why exactly you went away but somehow, I understand your action. What I have a harder time understanding is you joining that community in the forest, I was certain you were somewhere on your own. But don’t get me wrong! I’m glad you weren’t alone all this time.”

“I didn’t want these people to get our ways wrong, that’s why I stayed and became Ren’s advisor and right hand. Shion, I’m sorry for having come back like this, it’s not happening how I ima-” there the surprise that Nezumi felt from the hand that landed on his left shoulder interrupted his speech. He reported his entire attention to the slim pale fingers that cupped his shoulder perfectly: they were so warm and yet they were slightly shaking as if they were caught in a cold breeze, or was that from the stress? Nezumi instinctively wrapped Shion’s hand with his own right one (that was the first spontaneous action that he didn’t regret) and there, the two of them just stood in the room looking into one another’s eyes, breathing in synchronization and peacefully dwelling in this new kind of silence that, this time, felt protective and reassuring.

* * *

 

The next day, Shion took Nezumi and Ren to the No.7 headquarters, which was in a more isolated area further from the inhabitations and closer to the ruins of No.6’s wall. The house was bigger than both Ren and Nezumi expected, Shion explained to them that in there lived all the leaders of their community in addition to working in there: having everything in one place felt logical in case there was an unexpected matter of urgency.

“Wait, aren’t you one of their leaders too, Shion?” remarked Nezumi. “At least that’s what we were told by the messenger.”

“Don’t mind that, for some reason in his mind I am someone more important than I actually am. It is true that practically no decision can be made without consulting me first, but that’s because I am an advisor. I have lived among both populations, West Block’s natives and the people who used to be No.6’s citizens. I know how they both think and how they feel about certain things, therefore my knowledge can be used to reinforce unity. Wait for me here, I’ll go announce ourselves to the guards.” And so, he went ahead and approached the guard that stood in front of the headquarters’ door.

“It’s funny, you and Shion have had a similar role these past two years. You’ve both been advisors to help a community reconstruct itself. It’s like something binds the both of you together.” Ren gave Nezumi a satisfied smile that he didn’t exactly appreciate, and winked. She didn’t give Nezumi time to shout at her as she quickly walked over to Shion who was signaling them that they could go inside. Nezumi swore under his breath, annoyed that Ren was someone who could read people so well and easily guess someone’s feelings, and started making his way to the building as well.

The entrance was quite big in its own right and led to two corridors and one staircase. It had a few chairs put against one wall on which many maps were pinned, and the only source of light came from the windows that were on each side of the main entrance. A faint smell of paper and lamp oil decorated the air and only got stronger as Shion and his two guests made their way up the stairs and approached the room used for various meetings. The three of them now stood in front of a wooden door that had many cracks on it, which somehow reminded Nezumi and Ren that misery was everywhere around here, the difference being that some could afford to have more solid houses. Shion gave the both of them a shy encouraging smile and knocked four times. The voices that could be heard from inside stopped at once and footsteps were nearing the door. The person who opened it was no one but Shion’s mother, Karan, who looked inquisitively at her son and a bit menacingly at the two people standing behind him and noticed that they were wearing clothes belonging to him.

“Good morning Mom, I brought you some very special guests today” started explaining Shion in the most reassuring tone.

“Who are they?” called a voice from the inside.

“They better be important or useful enough to justify your interruption. You know very well we hold these meetings every morning until lunch” said Karan.

“They are! Nezumi and Ren have answered our call and come from the forest to help us.”

After an hour long discussion, it was decided on the one hand that Nezumi would be with Shion at all times to protect him in case he was in danger again, which was Karan’s suggestion. She had indeed tried to have Shion have a personal guard for a while now but he had always refused. Oddly enough, the prospect of having Nezumi being with him 24/7 suddenly changed his mind on the matter. Ren, on the other hand, would stay a bit with the leaders in the headquarters to solidify their newfound alliance before departing for the forest to inform her people of the new developments that had occured.

And thus, fate had it so that Nezumi and Shion would be sharing that small underground studio again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for having read this until the end, please don't hesitate to give me your impressions/opinion in the comments.
> 
> Till next time!


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hello, hello ! this chapter was a bit more difficult to write for me, but I guess the result isn't too bad (wow good way to sell your chapter). anyways I hope you will enjoy it
> 
> a round of applause to remusblack for beta reading my text, as always, thanks mate

As the two boys were walking back to the underground apartment, Nezumi couldn’t help but wonder if his new status was a blessing or a curse: the good part was that he would be in Shion’s company all the time and the bad part was… that he would be in Shion’s company all the time. He didn’t exactly determine if Shion’s calmness and forgiveness were genuine or if he had simply been angry and lonely for so long that he just didn’t care about Nezumi anymore, and was now putting on an act for old time’s sake. Nezumi had had his doubts about his feelings, surely it must’ve been the same for Shion, especially since he had been the abandoned one.

A question had been burning in the back of Nezumi’s mind for a while now, but he had kept his mouth shut up until they were both inside their once again shared home. “Shion, have you had feelings for someone else in my absence? Do you have a girlfriend at the moment? Or a boyfriend maybe?” blurted Nezumi out, even though he instantly wished he didn’t give in to his curiosity when he saw the look of hurt on Shion’s face.

“I won’t lie, it’s upsetting me that you would think that I’d be waiting for you in someone else’s arms.”

“I mean, well, it’s not like we even were an official _thing_ , it would’ve been natural if you had forgotten about me and moved on. After all, I took my sweet time to come back, didn’t I?” He regretted each and every word that he uttered but he couldn’t stop himself from speaking anyway.

“Stop talking nonsense and go fetch us some water, would you?” Shion went from being hurt to annoyed and to even (could it be?) visibly angry. He untied his bun in one sudden movement and pulled some of his hair while doing so, causing his face to slightly twist in pain. He then heavily dropped on the bed, his back facing Nezumi who felt a sudden urge to sit by Shion and drop a small kiss on his bare neck. But as always, he chickened out at the last moment, thought that it would be inappropriate and decided to obediently leave instead.

Nezumi walked as slowly as he humanly could to the well and back, so slowly even that a woman stopped to ask if he was doing alright or if he needed any help to move. He almost wanted to tell her that that wouldn’t help as his pain was located in another place, however he didn’t feel like confiding in a stranger so he just used the famous “I am just a bit tired so there’s no need to worry about me” excuse. 

The woman was about to leave when she looked a bit longer at Nezumi and raised an eyebrow. “Wait, aren’t you Shion’s friend? I remember seeing both of you walk together earlier today.” 

“I, I guess you could call us friends. We are friends, in a way, I think.”

“Oh I see,” she covered her mouth to hide her faint smile. “Tell your _friend_ that Mona said hi.”

Nezumi didn’t really want to overthink that encounter and especially the tone that was used to say the word _friend_. He wasn’t so sure either that he liked the fact that he gave off couple vibes whenever he was walking around with someone he’d more or less consider a friend. However this time, his mind couldn’t help but wander off into some forbidden daydreams of his, the sight of Shion as soon as he came back to the apartment immediately brought him back to reality though. Nezumi put the glass bottles freshly filled with water on the table and sat on the bed.

“Are you mad at me? Hey, Shion! Stop ignoring me.” Nezumi tried to playfully take Shion’s arms and to make him get up, however Shion wasn’t tagging along with it and thus extracted himself from that cage of flesh and fell flat on his back. He tried to look annoyed with Nezumi’s changing attitude, though he couldn’t help but bear an amused smile on his face, therefore he tried to hide his smiling expression with his arm even though Nezumi had already seen everything. 

“I really cannot believe you, Nezumi. You have been so cold and distant ever since Ren came back from her bath last night and now you’re starting to ask those dumb questions.” He finally sat up and regained some seriousness, which worried Nezumi a bit. “Sure, you coming back wasn’t planned, and I don’t expect you to be all lovey-dovey with me, but truthfully I never thought we would be back to square one. It’s frustrating not to know where you and I stand. I mean, are we even friends at this point?”

Nezumi produced a sad smile and glanced at his feet. _If you only knew the truth, Mona_. He then looked Shion directly in his glowing red eyes and asked, “Do you want us to be friends?”

“You know as well as I do, or I hope you do, that friendship is not enough for me. But I guess that I’ll have to be content with whatever I can get.” Shion had always been a very candid person, but it surprised Nezumi how the naivety and optimism that had once accompanied it had been replaced by a certain pragmatism and maturity.

Nezumi didn’t know what to reply or, to be more correct, he knew exactly what he wanted to say, what words his entire mouth was yearning to spill out, however something inside of him inexplicably stopped him from seizing that chance and making Shion his. So he fell silent instead and drew circles with his fingers on the bed. That nervous gesture was interrupted by that fatal hand that, this time, landed on his knee. Shion crawled closer to Nezumi and whispered “Kiss me.” As he made eye contact with Nezumi he begged again, louder this time. “Just kiss me, please.”

Taken aback, Nezumi tried to argue but, _to hell with arguing_ , and leaned in closer and closer to Shion. He initiated the kiss chastely, their lips barely touched, but that slight contact felt electric and only demanded for more. And so, Nezumi pressed his lips a bit harder and held the back of Shion’s neck with his hand. The kiss was getting more and more invasive, lips started to part and Shion’s hand was now firmly gripping that poor knee. Shion seemed so small and vulnerable in Nezumi’s embrace, it felt like he was a fragile porcelain cup that could break with any abrupt movement.

 _I just can’t risk it. I cannot hurt that boy, not again._ Nezumi didn’t allow things to go any further as he pulled out of the kiss. His heart broke and sang of joy at the same time when he saw the most beautiful smile he’s ever had the chance to witness on Shion’s face.

“I’m sorry, Shion, I can’t. It’s not that I don’t want to, but I just can’t.”

“Why? I had been happy with you in the past, don’t you remember? You made me grow and learn things about myself, you’ve shaped me into the person I am today and-”

Nezumi got up and sat on the couch. “Stop it. You almost died because of my recklessness. Hell, I abandoned you and made you needlessly wait two years for me! All because we once tried to have something other than friendship, even unconsciously. Really I am not sure we should be anything other than friends. Perhaps you should’ve waited for me in someone else’s arms.”

Shion went to sit down on the couch as well, he looked tired, desperate and as if he was searching for some way to bring Nezumi to his side. But he looked like he gave up after a moment, so he sighed. “I guess we’re really back at square one.”

“No, not at square one. I will protect you, I will make sure no one ever hurts you. But I will do it as your friend, because that’s all I should be to you.”

“I guess you’ve already failed then.” Shion stormed out of the apartment, leaving Nezumi alone with his thoughts. He didn’t understand why he couldn’t commit to Shion. He couldn’t see what blocked him from doing the one thing his entire being desired the most. But no matter how he looked at it, he concluded that he simply wasn’t ready to open up like that to Shion. He couldn’t risk developing a stronger bond with him when he was so certain that he would mess everything up and make it end in pain.

_Maybe I am not doing any of this for him, but only for myself. I am selfish. And scared. And I may have ruined everything when I had the opportunity to finally make things right._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> well this was a bit shorter I think and there was a pause in the general storyline, but I hope you enjoyed it the same. do not hesitate to tell me your impressions in the comments and till next time!! x


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi, so here is the fifth chapter and it's the longest so far (probably to make up the fact that chapter 4 was a bit shorter idk). I really hope you'll like it and will look forward to the next ones as much as I do. 
> 
> Enjoy!!!

Nezumi fell asleep as soon as he made himself comfortable on the couch. He was later woken up by the sound of Shion chopping up vegetables for whatever meal he had planned for dinner. His hair was neatly put in a bun again and he was wearing a different shirt to earlier, all of which made Nezumi wonder if it all had been just a terrible nightmare and felt a little hope: maybe it was just his brain warning him of the things he absolutely shouldn’t do. However Shion’s sad look in his direction and the redder glow in his eyes confirmed to him that he had messed up for real. He sat on the ground next to the white haired boy and asked if he could be of any help. Shion handed him a few onions and a knife in silence and continued pretending that nothing had happened.

“You see, even when I try to act in your best interests I end up hurting you. I am too chaotic for your own good. I’m really sorry.”

“Two years ago you wouldn’t have even apologized and would’ve kept up this masquerade with me. You’ve grown a lot, Nezumi.” He put his own knife on the table and softly stroked Nezumi’s cheek. “I am so sorry too. I may have rushed things a bit. But we can take it slowly from here. Let me prove to you that I don’t need you to protect me from yourself.”

“You’re too good and too patient with me, as always.” Nezumi smiled with hope, for what seemed to be the first time in forever.

Shion removed his hand and continued his culinary work, not for long though, as he quickly paused again and turned to face Nezumi. “Did you mean it when you said we never were a thing?”

“I think that at the time we both had bigger concerns than defining the exact nature of what we had. But know that I really loved you, romantically that is.”

“ _Loved_. Past tense. Noted.” Shion looked like he was about to cry, but he managed to control his watery eyes, surely in order not to make things tenser than they already were.

“Don’t be ridiculous. Do you really believe I stopped having feelings for you? Try and figure out why it’s so hard for me to… to allow us to become an official thing now. I, dammit… I am really not great at talking about those things.”

“I didn’t notice that at all, it’s all big news to me. I swear.” Shion’s sarcastic tone made Nezumi roll his eyes and they both laughed in synchronization. That’s when they knew that they’d be alright eventually, that there would come a day when they’d both be ready to let themselves completely and entirely fall in love with each other and to share that passion together.

The next two weeks were pretty uneventful and mundane, a routine was quickly established without even having to organize it beforehand: Shion did the cooking and washed their clothes, Nezumi often found himself fetching the water, as the walks to the well gave him time to think, and he liked to clean the little apartment just like he used to all those years ago, and together, they went to the market to buy whatever supplies they needed. They sometimes stopped by at Inukashi’s reconstructed dog hotel that they now tended with Rikiga (who, by the way, was still trying to win Karan’s heart). The first time the two boys came there, Inukashi was so startled to see Nezumi again that they looked like they were about to hug and attack him at the same time. In the end they went for a hug, by eagerly jumping on Nezumi, and later acted as if that had never happened. There were even more dogs than before and Nezumi learned that the facility was quite popular, especially among children who liked to come spend afternoons playing with the animals and washing them. Inukashi thought it was very practical and a good publicity for their hotel, especially since Shion didn’t have time anymore to take care of the dogs. And so, Nezumi and Shion developed a small habit of sometimes having tea with their two old friends after visiting the market.

One evening however was different to the others: Shion felt pretty bored and thus picked up a book from the library. He then went to Nezumi who was daydreaming on the couch and asked if he could read it aloud for the both of them, as he really liked his reading voice and the way he acted all the characters so perfectly. Nezumi approved of the play that was chosen and took the book from Shion, he didn’t want to admit it aloud but he missed acting a lot, so the request made him happy for more than one reason. Shion didn’t join Nezumi on the couch but sat on the ground and rested his head on Nezumi’s knee, which frankly surprised him a bit but he didn’t mind. When he got to the second act of the play, during one scene that was filled with emotion that he really enjoyed acting out, he felt the tip of Shion’s fingers shyly going up and down his leg until the knee. He tried not to pay too much attention to that and continued reading, but it was getting more and more difficult to focus on portraying the right emotions and to use the right tone for the different tirades when the fingers got less and less shy. In the end he managed not to pay too much attention to it, making Shion give up as he got no reaction on Nezumi’s part. When he finished reading the play, Nezumi looked fondly at Shion’s head and at the wavy white hair that fell on his shoulders and slightly ruffled it. They both contently sat there in silence until they decided that it was time to go to sleep.

* * *

 

“Nezumi, do you really need to follow me every time I take a bath?” whined Shion the next day.

“You heard your mother as well as I did: I have to try to be with you at all times and I don’t want to disappoint her of all people.” There Nezumi dramatically put a hand on his chest.

“I know, I know. What I meant was: do you really need to enter the bathroom with me? Couldn’t you guard the door from the outside?” They both blushed and felt a little awkward. “It’s not that I don’t want you around but you seeing me naked it’s, I don’t know, it…”

“It might excite you.” Nezumi wore a satisfied smirk on his face that only widened when he saw the expression of shock on Shion’s face, he looked as outraged as a blushing maiden. That sight was so endearing to Nezumi.

“That’s it. You’re definitely waiting outside.” Shion quickly went out without even waiting up on Nezumi who was still tying up his hair.

Nezumi arrived in front of the door he was to guard right at the moment when Shion was closing it. They quickly made eye contact, which gave time for him to smile cheekily. Sadly for him, Shion decided to react to his teasing by smiling back and calmly closing the door: that was the exact opposite of what he was expecting, but receiving a smile from Shion could never qualify as disappointing. While waiting in front of the door, Nezumi was humming an old tune whose lyrics he completely forgot, but that didn’t matter as the melody was quite soothing and perfect to be merely hummed.

Suddenly he heard some footsteps on his right and turned his head in a quick movement: he didn’t see anyone at first but shortly after he glimpsed the silhouette of a tall muscular person, probably an adult man, who was walking back and forth at the end of the corridor that resulted in a crossing between the two main corridors of the underground tunnel. The shadow was never far from that crossing, it looked as if he were waiting on someone – could it be Shion? – and he was wearing a hoodie covering his head, all of which made him look quite suspicious to Nezumi. He didn’t want to call out to the stranger though because a) it could be a trap to make him quit his position and b) he might have been just imagining things and the man was perfectly innocent. In the end, he decided that the wisest thing to do was to remain where he was but to discretely keep an eye on him and to take another route than the crossing to go back to the apartment once Shion was done with his bath. As the seconds went by Nezumi felt more and more anxious about it, all he wanted was to get inside to check on Shion… what if the stranger didn’t come on his own? What if they found a way to get into the bathroom? What if there was a secret passage? Nezumi took in a deep breath as to not let panic take over and knocked a few times on the door.

“Yes, what is it?” called Shion from the inside. _He’s safe, of course he is. Why was I panicking like that?_

“Nothing. Just wanted to know if you were soon done, I am bored and hate waiting,” answered Nezumi. The only reply he got was laughter from the other side of the door.

Finally, after what seemed to be an eternity, Shion opened the door again. His white hair was still very wet and looked wavier that way. Even if that view was quite pleasant to the eye, Nezumi covered Shion’s head with the extra towel that he brought along: he couldn’t risk him catching a cold even if the undergrounds were quite warm. Shion giggled and rolled his eyes, but didn’t complain about being taken care of like that. Just as he was making his way towards the crossing at the end of the corridor, Nezumi took him by the elbow and started leading him the other way.

“Wait,” called Shion. “It’ll go faster if we go the way we came from.”

“I know. I’ll explain when we get back to the apartment.” Nezumi tried to speak in a neutral tone and smiled as not to make Shion feel worried, and thankfully for him, he didn’t lose any of his acting skills. He also tried not to walk too fast, but sometimes threw a quick glance to the back to make sure that the tall silhouette hadn’t followed them; the hallway was luckily always empty behind them.

They came back to Karan anxiously waiting on the couch: she immediately got up as they opened the door and went to check in on the boys.

“Thank goodness you’re both alright.” She went and hugged Shion first and then Nezumi, which startled him. The look the both of them gave her made her understand that she had some explaining to do. “We sent someone four days ago to speak with the loyalists in order to find some way to maintain peace. What we got back were threats against the lives of us leaders and against your own life Shion. They don’t want to negotiate: only full power and getting things to how they used to be will satisfy them. You two understand better than anyone else that we can’t comply with that.”

“How come I never knew of that diplomatic mission?” inquired Shion, visibly disturbed by that new development.

“The council agreed to keep you away from all of this for a time to protect you. It is clear that you’ve become one of the loyalists’ main targets, probably because you’ve had an important place in our community, but also because you’re my son. They surely want to weaken me by hurting you and I can’t let that happen. You and Nezumi are to pack your things and leave by nightfall. I don’t want to know where you’re going, but I want you to stay away for a time until we finally settle things down.”

“What if you never do?” said Shion.

“Then don’t ever come back.” Karan’s eyes were filled with tears and she went in for a second hug, holding her son tighter than ever. She broke free from his arms, kissed both of his cheeks and looked at him for some time with a proud and yet sad smile on her face. She then turned to Nezumi and hugged him again as well. “Promise me that you’ll take good care of him and that you’ll protect him. I know you love him almost as much as I do, please make him happy.” She whispered in his ear and when she let go, Nezumi nodded his head to show he agreed to the promise. Karan left the apartment without looking back and Nezumi held Shion by the arm as he was trying to run after her. “Don’t make things any harder for her. Come, we have to hurry.”

Shion relaxed his tense arm a bit and seemed to have realized something. “Did the fact that we took another route to come back here have anything to do with this?”

“I’m not sure, but I saw a suspicious person in the corridors when you were bathing. I didn’t want to risk facing them and I’m glad we didn’t.” The hand that still gripped Shion’s arm made its way down to the hand and squeezed it. “It’ll be alright. As long as we stay together, it’ll be alright. I won’t lose you again, Shion.”

While smiling and crying at the same time, Shion moved his hand around Nezumi’s until their fingers were entangled together. He then took a deep breath and let go to start packing. Not even an hour later, they were ready to leave: their futures might be looking very gloomy and uncertain, but they didn’t mind as long as their fates were intertwined.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think I quite like where this is going...
> 
> Thank you for reading the chapter! Don't forget to leave a comment, if you have something to say about it. :) 
> 
> Until next time x


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi, it's been a while...  
> I haven't updated in so long due to university and exams (but in the end I passed!), but also due to a lack of inspiration and confidence in my writing abilities. Thankfully, I'm back and finally ready to finish this story.
> 
> Shoutout to my friend remusblack for beta reading this chapter as always.
> 
> I hope you'll enjoy this.

Nezumi and Shion stood one last time in the room that’s been a home to the both of them, whether they had shared it together or made it their own, both of their hearts felt heavy while dread and fear of the unknown made a nest in their minds.

Nezumi tried to absorb each molecule in that room and make it part of himself. He hated nostalgia and clinging on to the past but this was different. This was the place where he had saved Shion’s life, where they had learned to know each other and to love each other, where they’d argued so many times, where they had kissed for the first time. He glanced at his old sofa and internally thanked it for all the good times and everything it had allowed to happen. He turned his head towards his library and saw mice running from one shelf to another. He wondered if Shion had named them as well and felt a bit sad that he’d never have the time to get to know those animals. His eyes went finally to his bed and his stomach twisted itself in the feeling he hated the most: regret.  _ But what exactly am I regretting? _ Nezumi inhaled deeply and understood, a bit ashamed and embarrassed of his next thought.  _ I didn’t get to make him mine on that bed. _ He blushed and suddenly feared that Shion could read his thoughts, but quickly came to his senses, realizing how childish he was acting.

Shion walked to the bed to pick up a small knife from the box under it and turned around to face Nezumi once he had put it inside his backpack that he then left on the floor. He gave the taller boy a soft smile while having both a happy and a sad look in his eyes. Nezumi marveled at Shion’s ability to convey two contradictory emotions at the same time. Shion took one of Nezumi’s hands in his own and put his other one on Nezumi’s shoulder.

“Let’s dance, like we did that one night two years ago,” he whispered.

“I don’t know if we have the time for that. We shouldn’t,” Nezumi tried to sound convincing but neither of them were convinced by his words. Shion tilted his head to the right and tried to look as cute as possible, Nezumi liked Shion’s puppy face and the way his big red eyes seemed to pierce his soul and make him do whatever their owner wanted to. He gently chuckled, put his free arm around Shion’s waist and started leading their dance. He noticed that Shion wasn’t as clumsy as he used to be and that they were actually gracefully going round and round in that small space they’d call home.

“Did you per chance have someone teach you to dance?” inquired Nezumi.

Shion smiled. “Maybe... Maybe I’m just naturally skilled at dancing.”

“Don’t bullshit me, you barely stood on your feet last time we did this,” pointed Nezumi out. He liked this side of Shion’s a lot, the one that would try to flirt with him while being cheeky.  

“All right, all right. Let’s say I had someone give me dance lessons. Am I not allowed to show off my newly acquired skills?”

Nezumi got closer to Shion and whispered in his ear. “I wonder what other new skills you’ve acquired since last time.”

Shion gave Nezumi a look he had never given him before, it was as if he was daring him to act out on his words, but Nezumi didn’t forget his previous doubts and fears. He was quickly brought back to reality and realized how silly it was for them to flirt and dance right at this moment, when Shion’s life was in danger. He abruptly stopped his steps and let go of Shion who went back to wearing a sad expression on his face. The white haired boy acted as if nothing had happened, picked up his backpack and looked around one last time.

“Do you think that this is what life is all about? Partings and reunions?” asked Shion.

“Maybe, at least it gives you something to look forward to,” answered Nezumi. He put on his own backpack and fixed up the scarf around his neck. He tried to radiate confidence and strength in each movement made and each word pronounced in order to lighten Shion’s burdens, when in reality he was full of doubts and didn’t quite know how he could keep the promise he had made an hour ago. He looked at Shion who was crying again, it was probably the third time since Karan had left, each tear pouring out of his eyes felt like someone stabbed Nezumi in the stomach. He couldn’t bear seeing him this hurt and wondered if he had been that much of a mess too after he had left two years ago.

“Don’t worry, I’m sure we’ll be back here in no time. Believe in your mother, in No.7, in that unity you love so. But believe in me as well, I’ll watch over you.” Nezumi stepped to the side to be face to face with Shion and left a small kiss on his forehead, and mentally thanked whatever had to be thanked that the height difference was still playing in his favor. Surprisingly, that stopped Shion’s crying almost immediately, he then declared that it was time they left even though they still weren’t sure which way they should be going.

As Nezumi stepped out of the apartment, someone grabbed him by the arm and pulled him to the side. He just had the time to make out the silhouette of the stranger from earlier before he got punched in the stomach. He let out a scream of pain and tried to regain freedom from the attacker’s grip. He turned his head with great difficulty and saw Shion who had run out of the apartment as soon as he had heard the tumult outside.

“Shion, run! I’ll find you later” yelled Nezumi in an authoritarian voice. However he noticed that no word coming out of his mouth could change Shion’s mind: he was determined to stay.

Nezumi didn’t have the time to argue further though, as another punch made its way to his jaw. It hurt even more than the last one, maybe because this time, there was something bigger at stake than his own wellbeing. He finally tried to attack his opponent by kicking in his knees with his right leg. It destabilized the stranger just long enough for him to break free from the arm that held on to his. He reiterated by returning the punches he received but he was a bit too confident about his attacks. Indeed the tall man found another opportunity to seize him and to pin him on the ground. The attacker was very heavy and the knee he pressed against Nezumi’s back gave him a hard time to breathe. He tried to take in his lungs as much air as he could, but that was in vain: he was slowly suffocating. His vision started to blur and his trachea felt like it was burning, his consciousness was slipping away from his control as much as he tried to take it back and fight again. All he heard before passing out was a loud exploding like noise.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hopefully the chapter was worth it!! Do not hesitate to leave a comment and see you next time, lovelies xx


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! Here comes the 7th chapter; the end is very near, which makes me a bit sad to be honest...  
> Anyways, enjoy this chapter and shoutout to my good pal remusblack for being the coolest beta reader!!

Nezumi regained consciousness to sunlight warming his face and to birds beautifully singing. He analyzed the environment around him and couldn’t quite recognize where he was exactly, but he saw tall trees all around him and felt that his body was lying on soft natural ground. He sat up with some difficulty, his head still felt heavy just like that one morning after he had drank the night away so long ago. He then saw Shion sleeping right next to him: he was lying on his back, Nezumi looked at his chest go up and down for a few seconds and then crawled closer to him. He now was towering over Shion, still observing him in his sleep, inspecting every patch of skin that was exposed to make sure he was okay. He approached his face to Shion’s and ran a finger on his cheek, which woke him up.

“Good morning,” whispered Shion.

“Am I dead?” whispered Nezumi back.

Shion laughed gently. “Why would you ask that?”

“Last time I was awake, I was fighting this giant in the underground corridors. Now, I have woken up to birds singing in the middle of the forest. I honestly didn’t think I would end up in heaven.”

“You’re very much alive. I just took over once you couldn’t fight anymore. Don’t worry, that man will never bother us again.” A dark glow appeared in Shion’s eyes, he looked menacing and somewhat murderous. Nezumi had hoped he would never see that expression on Shion’s face again, but he had now understood what had happened after he had passed out.

“How long have I been out?”

“One day. I have carried you on my back from there, I tried to remember the way to your village to ask Ren for some help.” Shion frowned, picked up a small rock that was on the ground and toyed with it nervously. “Now that you’re awake, I wonder if it is wise to go to your village. I wouldn’t want to put those people at risk, you know.”

“You’re right. However I don’t think it’d be a bad idea to go there just for a short while to gather some things we might need for survival. There are some tools that would be very useful in my house.” Nezumi got up and offered his hand to Shion who took it and got up as well, picking up his bag with his other hand at the same time.

Neither Shion nor Nezumi wanted to let go of the hand they were holding, thus they started making their way deeper in the forest with their fingers intertwined and their breaths synchronized. There was something magic and surreal in the sweet spring air: they could’ve sworn that they had landed in one of those forests described in the many fairytales that rested back home in the library and therefore half expected elves and unicorns to appear in front of them and take them to a less complicated world. To be quite frank, Nezumi would’ve had an easier time believing in a unicorn than in the fact that he was walking with Shion’s hand in his, with their shoulders brushing almost at every step and with occasional side looks and smiles from the beautiful boy who was next to him. The only problem was that it all felt a bit too romantic, and he didn’t want to play with Shion’s hopes especially after what had happened a few weeks ago. He hated himself for not making his greatest wish a reality, especially since it would be so easy to make it happen. But his desires should be insignificant next to Shion’s wellbeing. Right?

Nezumi abruptly stopped walking, which almost made Shion stumble. He turned around with some worry in his eyes.

“Are you alright? We can pause a bit if you’re not feeling well,” said Shion.

“Yeah, I’m fine. Let’s walk some more and then make camp. We still have to travel for two more days.”

Nezumi didn’t talk much for the rest of the day, he was too buried in some thoughts of his, which Shion noticed. He decided to leave Nezumi to it, especially since they’d both had a few rough days. They dwelled in silence and attempted to recover the best they could in order to face the next day stronger.

When the evening came and it became too difficult to walk in the forest, they decided to eat a bit and sleep immediately after. It wasn’t easy to do the simplest things, such as opening a backpack and taking out some dried meat to eat when there was no light to guide them through their movements. Indeed, both Shion and Nezumi agreed it was wise not to light a fire and thankfully for them, the night wasn’t too cold. They decided nevertheless to sleep close to one another, however they both had a different idea of what close would mean. Nezumi lay on his right side and didn’t quite expect to feel Shion’s body pressed to his back, nor didn’t he think Shion would wrap him with his left arm. He was startled, however he didn’t think about asking Shion to back away a bit: they both needed some human warmth and felt quite at ease sleeping like that. Nezumi’s eyelids felt heavy very quickly and thus he slipped in the world of dreams not too long after having lain down.

Two days later when they arrived near the village they were spotted by a sentinel who was watching out for visitors, or intruders depending on the side they were on. He immediately recognized Nezumi and accompanied them to the village. They saw Ren at the gates who was ordering about some of the rare people capable of doing physical work into fortifying the fence that was sheltering them. She turned around and saw who the sentinel came with, smiled widely and ran to her friends to welcome them. She warmly hugged Shion and then Nezumi, which was the first hug they had shared in the two years they knew each other.

“You both look quite tired, and I didn’t expect you to visit us so soon. Is everything all right?” said Ren, who couldn’t help but worry by the look on the both of them.

“If you have some time, come by my house. There have been some new developments,” declared Nezumi wearily. Ren decided that it was enough work for the day, sent everyone home and followed Nezumi and Shion inside the village.

Shion looked at his surroundings with wide curious eyes. He seemed to have a thousand questions about the place and not nearly enough time to ask them all. So he walked in silence, admiring everything this community had managed to make with so little resources and in a relatively short amount of time. He glanced at both Nezumi and Ren with pride and smiled when he locked eyes with his companion. For a moment he seemed to have forgotten what dangerous situation he was in and just felt really excited to spend some time in the village.

Finally, the trio arrived at the small house. Nezumi didn’t feel much as entered it, probably since this place was empty, it lacked in both objects and memories. He rarely ever considered this place a home anyway, merely a shelter where he could store his belongings. However, once Shion walked inside, the small room became cozier and felt like a place where Nezumi could settle down. The sad grey walls obtained some color and glow and the air gained a degree or two in warmth, or so it seemed. Shion’s admiring look never left his face, even though this inhabitation was very humble compared to the one they were in just a few days ago. They all sat down at the table – Nezumi noticed that it wasn’t dusty: someone must’ve kept the place clean – and he then proceeded in explaining Ren everything of importance that had happened since her departure. She listened to Nezumi talk without interrupting him even though it was clear that some questions burned her mind. When he finished recounting the past events she sighed deeply and tapped nervously on the table with her right fist, thinking about how she could be of any help to her friends.

“You’re both welcome to stay here as long as you wish, and I strongly advise you to rest here for some time until you figure out what your next move should be,” Ren finally said.

“No we need to go as soon as possible. Spending too much time here would be too dangerous for everyone. Surely our enemies will think about checking this place out, especially since we both spent time in No.7,” replied Nezumi.

“The chances for that would be slim. We have tried keeping my visit and the alliance as secret as possible, and I don’t believe any of the leaders are spying on us for the loyalists. And besides, Nezumi, you’ve done so much for us. Let us repay you by giving you resources and protecting you until you’re ready to leave. It would be insane to leave now with nothing planned,” argued Ren. She could be really convincing when she wanted to, with both her speeches and natural charisma, which made everyone think she was born to lead. She got up and excused herself, insisting that they should all get some rest and that they would discuss some more the next day. She turned around when she opened the door and gave Nezumi a hard look, showing him that she wouldn’t let him leave like that.

Shion, who had decided not to talk too much the whole time got up as well and stretched his legs. He took out of his backpack some food, more dried meat and a few biscuits and some water. Nezumi and he ate in silence, and once they were finished Shion nervously played with his hair while Nezumi didn’t move an inch, he was again too absorbed in some train of thought, like he often was these past few days.

“You know,” started Shion shyly after he was tired of twisting hair around his fingers, “I think Ren is right. While I agree that us staying here represents danger for this community, leaving tomorrow or tonight with no strategy is the least wise thing for us to do. Maybe we should stay at least a day or two, to think it all through and then leave.” He was up again, pacing frantically around the room. Nezumi stood up as well and stopped Shion’s nervous movement by holding him by the shoulders.

“All right, all right, we will do that. Just breathe and try to calm down,” Nezumi said, and when he saw tears forming in Shion’s eyes, he continued, “Talk to me, what’s going on?”

“I don’t like that I can’t do anything. Everyone needs to protect me, my mother, Ren, you, why can’t I defend my own life myself? I hate being useless and passive. Also I’m scared, I’m so scared. What if the loyalists retaliate and hurt everyone here because of me? What about my mother and my friends back in No.7? I feel like a coward for running.” Shion buried his head in Nezumi’s chest, the white haired boy’s tears wetting his shirt and his sobs creating vibrations against Nezumi’s rib cage. He felt a lump in his throat and lifted Shion’s chin up with the tip of his fingers, like he was manipulating fragile porcelain.

“Don’t say you’re a coward or useless when you have saved my life, even if I’m a bit annoyed you put yourself in danger and didn’t listen to me when I told you to run.” Nezumi cupped Shion’s face with his hands and hoped to make him understand that was one of the, if not the, strongest people he knew.

“You don’t have to thank me for that, you know that I’ll always be there for you.” Shion seemed on the edge of arguing some more but lips were suddenly pressing against his. He forgot all about his previous pain and didn’t have to think twice before returning Nezumi his kiss.

Nezumi didn’t hold back anymore, if there was one thing he became certain of these past few turbulent days, it was that he couldn’t live without Shion. They were each other’s homes, security blanket and future. Nezumi felt silly for having thought he could spend his days being only a friend to Shion, when that outcome made them both miserable, and they had more than enough on their plates already. The kiss was very different from last time, it felt more eager, more impatient or to be short, it felt liberating. Nezumi always thought that kisses with tongue were kind of gross, he remembered usually avoiding them when he would make out with boys backstage at the theater after he had performed a play. But with Shion, it was different: it wasn’t wet and invasive and uncomfortable, no, it was rather so easy and made him feel so warm that he wondered if all those boys before were just really bad at kissing, if he had gotten better with time, or if it would only feel good if it was with Shion.

It seemed like Shion was just as eager on his side, he pushed Nezumi towards the bed and pinned him to it, the shock of his back hitting the ground while Shion proceeded to leave marks on his neck made him produce a small moan. Nezumi’s hands slipped under Shion’s shirt and wandered around on his warm back, pushing in the same movement their chests closer together. They both knew exactly where this was heading, and they didn’t mind. They were happy that they could finally catch up on all of those missed kisses and touches they could’ve had in the past two years.

Shion interrupted his kisses for a second, looked Nezumi in his eyes with a very wide smile, cheeks still damp from the previous tears. “Finally,” he whispered. “Tell me if I go too far, I don’t want to do things you don’t want to.”

“Don’t worry about it,” replied Nezumi and ran his fingers through white hair that was falling on his face. “I’m ready.”

Nezumi could’ve sworn he saw some tears in Shion’s eyes again as he leaned in again to kiss him again. He was glad he finally made him cry of joy. He wished for this moment to be eternal, or rather, he wished that he would get to have an infinity of moments like this in the life that he was finally not afraid of sharing with Shion anymore.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you liked this chapter. Leave me your opinion or any remarks down in the comments and see you next time! x


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